Thursday night stock futures show a mixed trend as investors anticipate the second of two closely watched inflation reports this week. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures edge up by 15 points (0.04%), while S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures decline by 0.16% and 0.11%, respectively.
This follows a subdued day on Wall Street, with minimal movement in the Dow, a marginal dip in the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq Composite closing flat. Investor attention has been on Thursday morning’s inflation data, where December’s consumer price index exceeded economists’ expectations, showing a 0.3% increase for the month and a 3.4% rise from a year ago.
The persistence of inflation is viewed negatively by market participants hoping for potential interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Greg Bassuk, CEO of AXS Investments, notes that markets currently assign a 70% likelihood of the central bank lowering interest rates at its March meeting, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. However, he suggests that the CPI data might not be sufficient to shift market expectations, explaining the largely flat performance of major indexes.
In the crypto space, shares related to digital currencies experienced declines after the Securities and Exchange Commission approved a rule change allowing bitcoin-linked exchange-traded funds. Riot Platforms and Marathon Digital saw drops of approximately 16% and 12%, respectively, while Coinbase and MicroStrategy declined over 6% and 5%. Thursday night stock
For the week, the Dow has gained about 0.7%, the S&P 500 is on track for a 1.8% advance, and the Nasdaq outperforms with an increase of over 3% through Thursday’s close. Investors await the producer price index data on Friday, which tracks selling prices received by domestic producers, with economists expecting a 0.1% rise for December. Additionally, major banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, are set to report earnings before the bell.